Furnace for heating metal sheets and plates



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Filed April 1 7, 1924 zAsneets-sneet 2 .37 F SK65 C? 6@ 14 O66@ dog@ 45 Patent-ed .my ie, reza uNiran 'lerares recrear ortica.

nUnoLrI-I W. STULEB, or MGKEESPORT, PENNSYLVANIA.

FURNACE FOR. .HEATING METAL SHEETS AND PLATES;

appn'cation filed April 17,1924. bserial No. 707,084.

This invention is for a furnace for heat- 7 ing metal sheets or plates, and has for its prmcipal objects to provide a furnace for this purpose wherein; the sheets or packs of sheets or' plates maybe continuously and uniformly heated' with less labor and less fuel.-

a lower longitudinally extending heating chamber 7, the two chambers being connected by the-vertical passage 8.-

Opening into the front of the upper chamber 6 is a restricted entrance 9, and at the bottom of the lower chamber, at the same end of the furnace, is a restricted outlet passage 10. Passages 9 and 10 are only sufficiently' large to permit of the ingress and egress of sheets or packs Without admitting any more air than is necessary. i

The upperv and lower chambers of the furnace are separated by horizontal wall or partition 11.` The thickness of this wall will be reduced-to thegreatest desirablevminimum,

asis also the height of each chamber 6 and 7.

.Munted von the bottom of chamber 6 are a series of relatively 'closely spaced rollers or cylinders 12, having projecting shafts 13' it has the effect of .tipping a pack' or plate,

causing it to fall edgewise down passage 8.,

and thus be turned over..

"-'In the vbottom of the lower chamber is a series of rollers 17, in all respects sim- -ilar to rollers 12 and having shafts, sprockets 19, and a driving chain 20. The rollers 17 are rotated reversely to rollers 12, but preferably at vthe same speed so that they convey the packs toward-the front of the furnace to be discharged through outlet 10.v

Rearwardly of the last roll 17 ofthe. lower series, and in a position to be engaged byy the packs falling through passage 8, are idler rolls 21.

Provision may be made lfor cooling all ofthe rolls bv the location of a manifold 22 at one ,side of 'the furnace and the location 0f a second manifold 23 at the other side. ofl the furnace, these manifolds having- .branches 22a and 23, respectively, these branches going to the 'shafts-of the several rolls and having a watertight but rotatable connection therewith, such joints being designated at 24.\ Cold water may be supplied to one manifold 22, while hot water, heated in the cooling of the rolls, flows out the other manifold 23.

I-n the-vertical passage 8, which has a'l rounded rear wall, there may be provided a guide structure composed of two or more vertically extending curved guide bars 25 carried on upper and .lower horizontal bars 26 and 27 respectively,'passing through the j that are suitably'journaled in the furnace.

structure. The rolls are all revolved in the Same direction by 'sprocket Wheels 14 on the are all driven in a direction to conveya shafts 13 and sprocket chainl. rlhe rollers rear wall of the furnace. These rods are preferably slidably mounted in the rear wall -so that the bars 25 may be adjusted toward i A series of notches 28 may be providedin bars 27.

or from the front of the furnace.

At 29 are angle bars or other suitable frame members fixed against movement longitudi- I nally of the furnace,and, by eo-engagement of notches 28 withbars 29, the guide bars 25 may be adjustably fixed against end'wise movement. Obviously, however,l any other suitable means maybe provided for adjusti pack or-a plate away from the intake door` to the`backof the furnace.

The last roller 12 ofthe series in the upper chamber is located but a short distance backfrom the vertical passage 8. Rear- `wardly of this roller is a much smaller roller 16 that is just at the top of passage-8 and below the level of the last `roller 12.v- This roller runs idly, and is so positioned .that

ably holding bars 25 in position.

When a pack of sheets is fed from the last roller 12 to roll 1.6, the pack is tilted downwardly. As it falls, i-t is guided by bars 25, and is turned over. As the lowermost edge bears against idler rollers 21, they roll the plate onto the lower conveyor rollers 17. By rollers 17, the pack *is carried along the furnace and discharged through opening 10.

y Suitable burners, indicated at 30, may be provided at each side of the outlet'lO and at other vsuitable points along the furnace.

Outside of the furnace, on the level with the rolls 12, are feed rollers 31, driven from rolls 12, which serve to feed packs'or plates delivered thereto to .opening 9. A roller conveyor 32 is located at right angles to feed' conveyor 31.` Outside the discharge door is a conveyor 33 that may extend to a rolling mill or any other suitable poi-nt. l

In operation, a pack is carried by conveyor 32 onto feed conveyor 31 which feeds vthe pack into the upper chamber of the furnace.. In passing along the upper chamber, thetop of the pack is heated. Then the.

' pack is turned over and, as it goes along the bottom of the furnace, the part of the pack that was lowermost in the upper part of the furnaceis then the uppermost, so that the pack is uniformly heated throughout. The furnace, as thus designed, uniformly heats the packs,and, at the same time, has a. minimum fuel consumption. Running the outgoing sheets under the incoming sheets is a great improvement in that it allows for a furnace of large capacity with a minimum length and a consequent saving of floor space.

Instead'of moving the outgoing packs under the incoming ones, I may have the two 'chambers disposed side by side, as in Figs. 4 and 5.

In this form, the furnace structure has two longitudinally extending chambers 41 and 42 that are side by side, and separated by a partition 43. Chamber 41 has a restricted inlet opening 44 and a restricted outlet 45 at its opposite end. In the chamber are water cooled power driven rollers 46. In the other chamber, 42, in .which are similar reversely driven conveyor rollers 47, is a receiving opening 48 and a discharge 49.

Between outlet 44 of chamber A41 and inlet 48 of chamber 42, is a transfer mechanism for receiving the packs from the first chamber, turning them over, and retaining them to the second chamber. Any suitable manual or automatic means may be provided for this purpose. I have illustrated the packs as emerging from outlet 45 onto roller 50, and from which they drop onto inclined cross conveyor 52. In dropping 'edgewise onto the cross conveyor, the pack is turned over. The cross conveyor 52 discharges the pack onto an in-feed conveyor 53 that feeds the pack through opening 48 into chamber 42.

Conveyors 31, 32a and 33a, corresponding to conveyors 31, 32 and 33 of the construction shown in Figs. 1 and 2, may be provided at the front end of the furnace.

The operation ofthis form is the same as that of the form described inv connection with Figs. and 2, except that the furnace, instead of having two chambers and a ,con-

tinuous passage, with means inside the furnace for turning the packs, has means for turning the packs outside the furnace, between the incoming and outgoing heating chambers.

In either arrangement, the furnace isof advantage over present day methods in that it eliminates some of the labor, particularly the heater and his helper,lit saves fuel over present.methods, and effects more'nniform heating.

I claim as my invention:

1. A pack heating furnace comprising'a furnace structure having upper and lower longitudinally extending chambers therein, an input door opening into the top chamber at the front of the structure, a discharge door at the same end of the furnace opening into the bottom chamber, pack conveying means in each chamber, said upper a'nd lower chambers being connected by a vertical passage, and idler rollers in the furnacein juxtaposition to the vertical passage.

2. A pack heating furnace comprising a furnace structure having u/pper and lower longitudinally extending chambers therein, an input door opening into Vie top chamber at the front of the structure, a discharge door at the same end of the furnace opening means in each chamber, said upper and lower chambers being connected by a vertical4 passage, and idler rollers inthe furnace in juxtaposition to vthe vertical passage, and vertical guides in the vertical passage.

3. A pack heating furnace comprising a furnace structure having upper and lower longitudinally extending chambers therein, an input door opening into the top chamber at the front of the structure, a discharge door at the same end of the furnace opening into the bottom chamber, pack conveying means iu each chamber, said upper and lower chambers being connected by a vertical passage, idler rollers in the furnace in juxtaposition to the vertical passage, vertical guides in the vertical passage, and means .for adjusting said guides longitudinally of the furnace.

4. A pack heating furnace comprising an integral structure having two separate heating chambers therein, disposed one above the other, a roll conveyor in each chamber, said .conveyors operating in opposite directions,

lings.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature. I

RUDOLPH w. STULER. 

